UV Bulbed Burned Out in 1 Day

[bla403]

I recently bought a new UV sterilizer and hooked it up into my system. Everything seemed fine the first night and when I came home the next day it appeared to not be on. The ballast has an LED light which tells me power is going to it. I opened it up to check. 1 side of the bulb appears blue and the other side was orange and didnt appear to fire. I turned the bulb around and the issue was the same in reverse. The bulb also appears to have ~3/4" of silvery material burned on the inside of the bulb near the coils.
Any thoughts? A new bulb is like 25 bucks but if I put it in and this repeats then its 50 dollars in bulbs down the drain. Got the whole unit of ---- NIB.

 

[reefkprz]

if its one day old I would take the entire unit back and get a new one.

 

[scsinet]

Given that you got it off that auction site, you'll probably encounter challenges returning it.
But I'd try that first. If that doesn't pan out, rest assured that very often, products are shipped with very cheap lamps. A new lamp may very well not have the issue.
Also, be aware that the silvery coating on the ends of UV lamps are not necessarily an indication of a problem. These lamps are nothing but ordinary fluorescent lamps that do not have the phosphor coating on the inside that covers up all the stuff you nomally don't see.
By the way... I assume you are aware of the extreme danger in looking at an operating germicidal lamp... if not... be warned.

 

[bla403]

Operating around them I agree is an issue. Seeing them for a short second I wouldnt see as an issue. Similar to when you get flashed when someone starts welding near you and you get a glimpse with the

[hr]
eye.
1 side seems to work on the bulb and the other doesnt fire. Do you think I should put it back together and let it run for a day to see if it kicks back in?
The issue I have with getting a new bulb is I will have to get the same replacement one from the manufacturer since nobody else seems to make these bulbs. Its a 36 watt bulb that looks like the attached photo.

 

[scsinet]

Is the base of your lamp exactly the same as the one in your attached picture?
I found some 36" germicidal lamps, but they have a different base.

 

[bla403]

Here is an actual picture of it. Yeah I saw the 4 pin bases but mine is a G23 base. 2 pins and a square piece of plastic.
You can see the silver burn in on this picture. And its burned more on the side that doesnt work.

 

[scsinet]

Bummer bro. I'm afraid I couldn't locate one like that either.

 

[bla403]

Do uv bulbs normally look like that or to a lesser degree or do you think I got a bad bulb? Im not sure if they are supposed to burn in a little.

 

[bla403]

bump

 

[bla403]

Anyone have any input on the "burn-in" coloration on the bulb? Is that supposed to happen at all?